Sliding door construction for display cabinets



July 27, 1943- w. B. McMlLLAN 2,325,263

SLIDING DOOR CONSTRUCTION FOR DISPLAY CABINETS Filed Dec. 14, 194C 2Sheets-Sheet 1 u) I; \\\\\\\I\\ A 2 x7 i l ,2g 3 l l l Vn-wwe.

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July 27, 1943. w. B. MCMILLAN SLIDING DOOR CONSTRUCTION FOR DISPLAYCABINETS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec.

Patented July 27, 1943 SLIDING DOOR CONSTRUCTION FOR DISPLAY CABINETSWilliam B. McMillan, Clayton, Mo., assignor to Hussman-Ligonier Company,St, Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Application December 14, 1940,Serial No. 370,118

4 Claims.

This invention relates to display cabinets, and more particularly tosliding door or closure constructions for refrigerators of the show casetype. The principal object of the present invention is to provide asimple and inexpensive sliding door construction for a show caserefrigerator which will permit the doors to be easily operated andreadily taken out in substantially any position of their slidingmovement,which will reduce to a minimum leakage of air around the doorsand which will provide a straight line movement of the doors and preventrattling thereof. The invention consists in the sliding show caserefrigerator door construction and in the parts and combinations andarrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings which form part of this specification andwherein like sym- `bols refer to like parts wherever they occur,

Fig. 1 is a rear elevation of a refrigerator show case provided with asliding door construction embodying my invention,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary rear elevation of said case in theregion of the sliding doors,

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical transverse section on theline 3-3 in Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a horizontal longitudinal section on the line 4 1 in Fig. 2,

Fig. 5 is a vertical longitudinal section on the line 5-5 in Fig. 3,

Fig. 6 is an enlarged vertical transverse section on the line 6-6 inFig. 2,

Figs. 7 and 8 are views similar to Fig. 6, showing the manner in whichthe doors are removed,

Fig. 9 is a front view of one of the door retaining bolts,

Fig. 10 is a side View of said bolt,

Fig. 11 is a rear view of said bolt; and

Figs. 12 and 13 are top and bottom plan views of the respective upperand lower corner portions of one of the doors.

In the accompanying drawings, my sliding door construction isillustrated as a closure for a rectangular opening I in the inclinedupper portion of the rear wall 2 of a refrigerator show case. Saidclosure construction comprises inner and outer pass-type doors 3 and 4,respectively, mounted for independent horizontal sliding movement in theopening I in the inclined upper portion 2 of the rear wall of therefrigerator show case, the adjacent vertical meeting rails of saiddoors overlapping in the fully closed position thereof.

Each of the doors preferably comprises a frame (Cl. 2li-52.2)

5 of molded plastic or other material with two or more spaced parallelpanes 6 therein. Tc facilitate opening and closing the doors, the frames5 thereof have finger pockets or grooves 1 in the outer faces of theirend rails. The outei door 4 has a stop block or bumper II` secured byscrews 9 to the inner face thereof to prevent the opened inner door 3from being brought into complete register with said outer door and thusrendering both finger pockets of said inner door inaccessible. In closedposition, the remote ends of the doors abut against rubber bumper stripsor gaskets III secured to the end walls of the rectangular opening I byscrews Illa, while the adjacent end or meeting rails of said door aredisposed in lapped relation.

Secured to the bottom wall of the rectangular opening I by means ofscrews II is a sill strip I2 of molded plastic or other suitablematerial. This sill strip extends the full length of the opening I andhas two spaced parallel upstanding guide rails or ribs I3 that extendlongitudinally of said strip from end to end thereof and fit loosely inlongitudinal grooves Il in the bottoms of the respective doors to serveas guides therefor. The sill strip I2 also has a depending outermarginal ange I2a that overhangs the rear wall 2 of the refrigeratorshow case below the opening I therein. Secured by screws I5a in theangle formed by the bottom and outer side wall of the longitudinalgroove I4 in the bottom of each door are two metal angle shaped wear orslide plates I5 located one near each end of said groove. One flange ofeach slide plate I5 seats on the top of a guide rib I3 and the otherflange slidably engages the outer side face of said rib, thus limitingthe area of surface contact between the door and sill members to thecontacting portions of the slide plate and said guide rib.

Secured to the underside of the top wall of the opening I by means ofscrews I6 is a head strip I1 also of molded plastic or other suitablematerial. The head strip I1 extends the full length of the opening I andhas two spaced parallel duplicate guide ribs or rails I8 on theunderside thereof that extend longitudinally of said strip from end toend thereof and loosely engage longitudinal grooves I9 provided thereforin the upper edges of the respective doors. The groove I9 in the top ofeach sliding door is considerably wider and deeper than the rib I8cooperating therewith and has a relatively shallow outer side wall 20and a relatively deep inner side wall 2|; and the underside of the headstrip I6 has a longitudinal groove 22 therein midway of the two guideribs I8 thereon. the outer longitudinal portion 22a of said groove beingdeeper than the remaining portion thereof. In the operative position' ofeach door, the shallow outer side wall of the longitudinal groove I9 inthe top edge thereof overlaps the outer side of the guide rib I8therefor, while the deep inner side wall 2| of said groove extends intothe shallow portion of the groove 22 in the head strip I6.

At each end of each door, a distance lug 23 is formed in the groove I9thereof in the angleV formed by the bottom of said groove and the outerside wall 20 thereof. In the operative position of each door, the lugs23 are disposed beneath but clear of the underside of the guide railI8-therefor. The top groove I9 of each door also has lugs 2l at the endsthereof in the angle formed by the bottom and inner side wall 2I of saidgroove, these lugs being of slightly less height than the distance lug23. Located in the angle formed by the distance lug 23 of each door andthe outer wall 29 of the groove I9 in the top thereof is a metal angleshaped wear or slide plate 25 having its bottom flange secured by meansof a screw 23 flush with the top of said lug and its upstanding flangeseated against the inner face of said wall and adapted to slidablyengage the outer side face of the outermost guide rib. These metal angleplates serve as wear plates and reduce the area of sliding contactbetween the top of the door and the head rail to the portions of saidplates that engage the outer side face of the outermost guide rib I8.Located in the underside of the head strip I8 between the inner sideedge thereof and the inner side face of the innermost guide rib I8 is alongitudinal groove 22h. The longitudinal groove 22b is similar to andis located in the plane of the deep portion 22a of the groove 22 locatedbetween the two guide ribs I8,

Slidably mounted in a rectangular opening 21 that extends through thebottom of the longitudinal groove I9 in the top of each of the slidingdoors 3 and I near each end thereof is a spring bolt or catch 28 in theform of a rectangular slide block of molded plastic or other suitablesubstance. The rectangular opening 21 has one corner located in theangle formed by the inner end of the lug 24 and the inner side wall 2Iof the groove I9; that is, said opening has its rear edge disposed inflush alinement with the inner surface of said inner side Wall and itsouter side edge disposed in ilush alinement with the inner end face ofsaid lug. The opening 21 opens downwardly through the bottom of thegroove I9 into an outwardly opening recess or pocket 29, which is formedin the outer edge of the adjacent end rail of the door frame and has astop lug 30 therein that projects laterally from the wall at the rearside of said frame and terminates short of the front wall thereof. Thebolt 28 has a central hole or bore 3l therein that extends upwardly fromthe lower end thereof and in which is ilxed a centrally disp/osed guiderod 32 for a coil compression spring 33. 'I'he spring 33 is sleeved om.the guide rod or stem 32 and has a lose fit in the bore 3| in which saidstem is secured. The lower end of the bolt projecting spring 33 seats onthe stop lug 39 in the recess 29; and the upper end of said spring seatsagainst the upper or inner end of the downwardly opening blind bore 3|in the bolt which is projected upwardly by said spring. The guide rod 32extends downwardly below the mouth of the bore 3I provided 75 thereforin the bolt 28 through an opening 34 in the stop lug 30.

The spring projected bolt 28 is retracted, that is pulled downwardlyagainst the compression of 5 its supporting spring 33 into abuttingrelation -to the stop flange 30, by means of a knob or button 35 havinga stem 35a that is threaded horizontally into the outer side edge ofsaid bolt below the top wall of the recess 29. This knob is adapted toabut against the top wall of the recess 29 when said button is releasedand thus limit the upward sliding movement of said bolt. The slide boltor block 28 is rabbeted, as at 35, along its front upper corner toprovide a narrow upper end portion 28a at the back thereof; and theouter side edge of said bolt has a depending skirt or tail portion 31that is slidable in a space provided therefor between a suitable closureplate 38 for the recess or pocket 29 in the end of the 2o door frame andthe opposing outer side edge of the stop lug 39 of said recess. As shownin the drawings, the knob 35 is located outside of the cover plate 38and the stem of said knob extends through an opening 38a in said plate,which 25 opening is elongated to permit the desired sliding movement ofthe spring projected bolt 28 that is depressed or retracted by adownward pull on said knob.

In the projected position of the retaining bolts 30 or plungers 28 forthe outer door, the narrow upper end 28a of each bolt is flush with thetop edge of the deep inner side wall 2| of the longitudinal groove I9 inthe top of said door and extends into the groove 22 in the head rail I935 immediately beneath but clear of the deep portion 22a of said grooveand in close proximity to the front side wall thereof, while the bottomof the rabbet 36 that forms said narrow upper end of said bolt isdisposed below but clear of the bot- 40 tom of said head strip betweenthe groove 22 and the outermost guide rib I8 thereof, and the front faceof said bolt below said rabbet is disposed adjacent to and slightlyspaced from the inner side face of said rib. In the projected positionof the retaining bolts 28 for the inner door 3, the narrow upper end 28aof each bolt is disposed flush with the top edge of the deep rear wall2I of the groove I9 in the top of said door immediately below the groove22h in the head strip I6 and opposite to but slightly clear of theextended inner or front side wall of said last mentioned groove; and thebottom of the rabbet 38 in the front upper corner of said bolt isdisposed below but clear of the bottom of said head strip between thegroove 22h and the innermost guide rib I8, while the front face of saidbolt just below said rabbet is disposed opposite to but spaced slightlyfrom said inner side face of said guide rib.

By the arrangement described, each door has a sliding rib and grooveconnection with the sill strip I2 and the head strip I6 and slidingcontact between the door and said stripsis limited to the area of theportions of the metal wear strips I5 and 25 in engagement with the guideribs I3 and I8 of the respective sill and head strips due to the upwardand inward inclination of the door and the clearance space providedbetween said door and said sill and head strips. The narrow upperportions 28a of the spring bolts 28 serve as filler or spacing elementsto prevent excessive side play or rattle o1' the doors in the headstrip. while the strips themselves prevent excessive up and downmovement or play of the doors therebetween.

When it is desired to remove the doors from the rectangular openingclosed thereby, each door is partly opened so that access may be had tothe knobs 35 at both ends of the door and these knobs are then presseddownwardly against the pressure of the bolt projecting springs 33 untilthe bolts 28 seat on the stop lugs 30 in the recesses 29. In thisretracted position of the door retaining bolts the narrow upper ends 28athereof are brought below the top of the deep inner side wall 2| of thegroove I9 in the top of the door ush with the tops of the lugs 24therein, that is below the level of the bottom portion of the head stripIB between the outer guide rib I8 and the groove 22 when the outer dooris to be removed, or below the level of the bottom of said strip betweenthe inner guide rib and the groove 22h if the inner door is to beremoved. The upper portion of the door is then pulled forward to bringthe deep inner side wall 2| of the groove I9 in the top of the door inedgewise alinement with the deep portion 22a of the groove 22 in theunderside of the head strip I1. The door is then forced upwardly untilthe stop lug 23 abuts against the underside of the head strip I1outwardly of the adjacent guide rib I8, in which position the deep innerside wall 2I of the groove I9 is disposed within the deep portion 22a ofthe groove 22 if the outer door is being removed orwithin the groove 22bin said head strip if the inner door is being removed in the head strip.In this position of the door, the lower edge thereof is located abovethe plane of the top-of the guide rib I3 of the sill strip I2, therebypermitting said edge to be pulled outwardly7 clear of the outer edge ofsaid sill strip. The door is then removed by pulling the same downwardlyto bringthehighest portion thereof, that is the top edge of the highside wall 2| of the top groove I9 therein, below the plane of the guideribs I8 of the head strip I6 and then withdrawing the upper portion ofthe door from said opening. As shown in Figs. '7 and 8 of the drawings,when the upper portion of a door is pulled forward and then forcedupwardly into the grooves 22a or 22h of the head strip I1, the stop lugs23 in the groove I9 abut against the underside of the guide rib I8 ofthe head strip I1 and space the upper edges of the side walls 20 and 2lof the groove I9, the tops of the lugs 24 and the upper ends of theretracted bolts I8 and the bottoms of the rabbets 36 clear of theunderside of said strip; and these clearance spaces, together with theside clearance spaces between the relatively deep side walls 2l of thegroove I9 and the grooves 22a or 22h and between the front faces of thelugs 24 and the front faces of the narrow upper end s of the retractedbolt and the inner faces of said guide ribs are sufdcient to permit theupper portion of said door to be tilted in said head strip far enough tobring the lower portion of said door clear of the sill strip.

The hereinbefore described sliding door construction has severalimportant advantages. It permits the doors/to be quickly and easilymounted in and removed from the door opening in substantially anyposition of their sliding movement; it permits easy operation of thedoors; and it also prevents binding of the doors without excessive sideplay thereof and reduces to a minimum leakage of air around the doors.

The invention is applicable to display cabinets having one or moresliding doors and is not limited to the precise shapes and arrangementsof parts shown and described.

What I claim is:

1. A sliding door construction fora display cabinet comprising a Wallhaving a door opening therein, a head strip secured in said openingalong the upper edge thereof, a sill strip secured in said opening alongthe lower edge thereof, said door having longitudinal grooves along theupper and lower edges thereof, said sill strip having a guide rib alongthe top thereof cooperating with the groove along the lower edge of saiddoor, said head strip having a guide rib along the underside thereofcooperating with the groove along the upper edge of said door, said lastmentioned rib and groove having suiiicient clearance therebetween topermit the upper edge of said door to be moved outwardly in said openinga limited distance and then upwardly to lift the groove in the loweredge of said door clear of the guide rib of said sill strip, and adownwardly retractable plunger mounted in said door and cooperating withsaid head strip to prevent such outward movement of said door in saidopening said plunger being disposed with its lower e..d portion in arecess providedtherefor in one end of said door and with its upperportion disposed in the groove in the upper edge of Said dOOI, a COVerplate for said recess, said recess having a lug projecting from one wallthereof for limiting the downward movement of said plunger, a springinterposed between said plunger and said lug for projecting said plungerupwardly, and a retracting knob for said plunger located exteriorly ofsaid end of said door and having a stem portion extending through a'slot provided therefor in said cover plate and secured to said plunger.

2. A sliding door construction for -a display cabinet comprising a wallhaving a door opening therein, a head strip secured in said openingalong the upper edge thereof, a sill strip secured in said opening alongthe lower edge thereof, a door mounted in said opening, said door havinglongitudinal grooves along the upper and lower edges thereof, said sillstrip having a guide rib along the top thereof cooperating with thegroove along the lower edge of said door, said head strip having a guiderib along the underside thereof cooperating with the groove along theupper edge of said door, said head strip having a groove o f uniformwidth along the underside thereof inwardly of the guide rib thereon,sufficient side clearance being provided between the outer side wall ofthe head strip groove and the inner side wall of the upper groove ofsaid door to permit the upper edge of said door to be pulled outwardlyfar enough to bring the inner side wall of the upper groove of said doorin line with the groove in the underside of said head strip insubstantially any position of the sliding movement of said door, inwhich position of the door the same may be raised and said inner sidewall entered into the groove in said head strip far enough to raise thegroove in the lower edge of said door clear of the guide rib on saidsill strip, and a retractable plunger mounted in the groove in the upperedge of said door and cooperating with the groove infthe underside ofsaid head strip to prevent such outward movement of said upper edge ofsaid door in any position of the sliding movement thereof, said plungerbeing retractable in substantially any position of the sliding movementof said door.

3. A sliding door construction for a display` cabinet comprising a 'wallhaving a door opening therein, a head strip secured in said openingalong the upper edge thereof, a sill strip secured in said opening alongthe lower edge thereof, a door mounted in said opening between said headand sill strips, longitudinal sliding rib-andgroove connections betweenthe lower edge of said door and said sill strip and between the upperedge of said door and said head strip, said last mentioned connectioncomprising a longitudinal rib on the underside of said head strip, alongitudinal groove of uniform width on the underside oi' said headstrip inwardly of said rib having a relatively deep outer side portionand a relatively shallow inner side portion, and a longitudinal groovein the top of said door having a relatively low outer side walloverlapping the outer side of said rib and a relatively high inner sidewall extendinginto the inner side portion of the head strip groove, anda downwardly retractible plunger mounted in the door groove andextending upwardly into said head strip groove between the outer sidethereof and the inner wall of said door groove, thereby preventingoutward movement of the top of said door relative to said head strip inany position of the sliding movement of said door, said retractibleplunger being disengageable from said head strip groove in substantiallyany position of the sliding movement of said door, thereby permittingthe top of said door to be moved outwardly in said opening and thenceupwardly relatively to said head strip to disengage the slidingrib-and-groove connec-A tion between the lower edge of said door andsaid sill strip.

4. A sliding door construction for a display cabinet comprising a wallhaving a door opening therein, a head strip secured in said openingalong the upper edge thereof, a sill strip secured in said opening alongthe lower edge thereof, a door mounted in said opening between said headand sill strips, longitudinal sliding rib-and- :roove connectionsbetween the lower edge of said door and said sill strip and between theupper edge of said door and said head strip, said last mentionedconnection comprising a longitudinal rib on the underside of said headstrip, a

l longitudinal groove of uniform width on the underside of said headstrip inwardly of said rib having a relatively deep outer side portion,and a relatively shallow inner side portion, and a longitudinal groovein the top of said door having a relatively low outer side walloverlapping the outer side of said rib and a relatively high inner sidewall extending into the inner side portion of the head strip groove, thedoor groove having distance lugs in the bottom thereof disposed inabutting relation to the underside of said rib, and a downwardlyretractible springpressed slide block mounted in the door groove betweenand in abutting relation to the inner wall thereof and the inner side ofsaid rib and having a horizontal shoulder in abutting relation to theunderside of said head strip between said rib and said head strip grooveand a narrow upper end portion extending upwardly into said head stripgroove between and in abutting relaiton to said inner side wall of saiddoor groove and the outer side of said head strip groove, wherebyoutward or upward movement of the top of said door relative to said headstrip is prevented in any position of the sliding movement of said door,said block being retractible in substantially any position of thesliding movement of said door to disengage the narrow upper portion ofsaid block from said head strip groove and to bring said horizontalshoulder of said block below the level of said head strip rib, therebypermitting the top of said door to be moved outwardly in said openingand thence upwardly relatively to said head strip to disengage thesliding rib-and-groove connection between the lower edge of said doorand said sill strip.

WILLIAM B. McMILLAN.

